Posts Tagged ‘asbestos exposure’
£19,300 fine for working without an Asbestos Licence
Fadil Adil, of Coniston Road, Bromley, has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for overseeing a demolition project which involved asbestos removal without an asbestos removal licence.
The project involved the demolition of a building which had a restaurant on the ground floor and flats above; the project was being supervised by a Fadil Adil from South East London. The HSE have prosecuted the contractor for running a construction site which led to workers being exposed to asbestos-containing-material.
The demolition took place between the 21st to the 29th of June 2010, where asbestos insulating boards were present in the ground floor restaurant ceilings. The ceilings were broken up by three workmen using sledgehammers and hand-operated breakers meaning there is a strong possibility that the workmen were exposed to asbestos fibres.
An investigation by the HSE found that the defendant did not have a licence permitting him to work with asbestos nor was he trained in construction management.
HSE regulations state that an asbestos survey needs to be carried out on construction sites where asbestos might be present; this will ensure that guidance and training is provided to the workmen in order to make them aware of asbestos containing areas. Investigation found that there was no survey and that workers were not informed.
Ian Seabrook, an HSE Inspector said: Read More
A £1m fine for Marks and Spencer asbestos exposure at Reading store
At Bournemouth Magistrates’ court Marks and Spencer have been fined £1m for failing to protect customers, staff and workers from potential exposure to asbestos during refurbishment at stores in Reading, Bournemouth and Plymouth.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) initiated the criminal proceedings against Marks and Spencer plc and three other companies for asbestos-related breaches during refurbishment work at shops. It has been said that the management of the ‘retail giant’ were more concerned about the refurbishment works being ‘unsightly and ‘interfering with the shopping experience’, than controlling the exposure of the cancer causing fibres.
Bournemouth crown court was told that Marks and Spencer plc, did not allocate sufficient time and space for the removal of asbestos-containing materials at the Reading store. The contractors had to work overnight in enclosures on the shop floor, with the aim of completing small areas of asbestos removal before the shop opened to the public each day. Read More
Worker exposed to dangerously high levels of asbestos
A company in Bath has been fined after a builder was exposed to high levels of a type of asbestos linked to malignant and incurable cancer.
Jonathan Arnold, 49, of Castle Cary was fitting pipework for a new central heating system at Oxford House, in Combe Down, Bath when he was exposed to high levels of blue asbestos (crocidolite).
In a prosecution brought by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) against the building’s owners, Formac Electronics Ltd, Bath Magistrates’ Court heard the airborne substance was disturbed and spread within the building during refurbishment.
The court was told that, for a five-hour period on 4 August, Mr Arnold was estimated to have been exposed to a high concentration of airborne asbestos fibres many times over the control limit.
HSE investigated the incident and found Formac Electronics Ltd had failed to carry out a refurbishment and demolition survey, to establish the presence and condition of asbestos in the building.
It also failed to provide suitable information to contractors prior to the start of the refurbishment works which resulted in uncontrolled disturbance of the loose fill blue asbestos located within the fabric of the building.
When an HSE Specialist Inspector visited Oxford House under controlled conditions, loose fill blue asbestos insulation material could be clearly seen in the area where Mr Arnold had spent a long time on his hands and knees fitting pipework on the 3 and 4 August 2010.
Asbestos exposure is linked to a range of serious diseases including lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma, a malignant, incurable cancer. Of the three main asbestos types, crocidolite is associated with the highest risk of developing mesothelioma. Read More
Council in court over workers exposed to asbestos
Birmingham City Council and a Solihull refurbishment company have been sentenced for exposing three men to asbestos during work on a school.
Solihull Supplies Ltd, of Lodge Road, Knowle, was contracted by the council to refurbish the reception area at William Cowper Community Primary School, Newtown, Birmingham.
Solihull Supplies then sub-contracted another firm to remove ceiling tiles at the school without carrying out a proper risk assessment.
Birmingham Magistrates’ Court heard that on 24 July 2009 two workers from the firm, which cannot be named as legal proceedings are still ongoing, were tasked with stripping out tiles from seven rooms being refurbished.
However, a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation found the tiles contained brown asbestos and the work lasted several hours, exposing both workers and the school caretaker to asbestos. Also, rather than use a cleaner with a specialised filter, an ordinary vacuum cleaner was used which would have spread fibres into the air. Read More